Bill Popp Named NAIA Athletics Director of the Year for Second Time

By Mike DeVader, Reinhardt Director of Athletic Communications & Media

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – After helping Reinhardt Athletics navigate a full season of games and classroom challenges amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Vice President for Athletics and Athletic Director Bill Popp has been named the 2021 NAIA Athletics Director of the Year, the NAIA national office announced Wednesday.

This tribute is in recognition of outstanding accomplishments in athletics administration and service to the NAIA.

Popp, who was also recognized in 2020-21 as the Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) Athletic Director of the Year for the fourth time (2017-18, 2015-16, 2012-13), takes home this national award for the second time in his career (2018).

According to the NAIA database, Popp is just the third athletic director to earn the recognition multiple times in history (Jim Abbott, Oklahoma City; Darin Wilson, Georgia Gwinnett), but is the first to do so within the AAC.

"This has been a tremendous year for Reinhardt Athletics," Popp said. "Our teams have experienced the challenges of a pandemic, and the staff and coaches have provided the best possible experience we can for our student-athletes. I truly appreciate each and every member of our team here at Reinhardt and the amount of work that goes into the daily operations of this athletic department. What an honor for us to receive the prestigious AAC Duard Walker Trophy for the second time, and then be individually recognized amongst such an amazing peer group, is truly humbling.

Special gratitude and appreciation to my wife Jennifer and son Noah for their unwavering support. To Dr. Mark Roberts for the leadership and support he shows me and the entire athletic department; to Jeffrey Pourchier for his hard work, dedication and loyalty to the RU Eagles – and to Col. John Sullivan and my colleagues in the AAC – for their friendship and commitment to small college athletics. There are so many others that I owe a debt of gratitude to for help along the way during this amazing journey, and to each of them, I say thank you."

This news comes after Reinhardt Athletics put together one of the best cumulative campaigns in school history in the middle of a pandemic. The Eagles – who found continued success on the field of play and in the classroom – also earned the AAC Duard Walker All-Sports Trophy for excellence on the field for the second time in school history in 2020-21.

Reinhardt accumulated 162 AAC All-Academic student-athletes, 79 All-Conference players, 14 national championship appearances, 11 regular-season or conference championships, eight AAC Player of the Year recipients and three conference Coach of the Year selections.

Football and men's volleyball – who compete in the Mid-South Conference (MSC) – chipped in with 31 MSC All-Academic student-athletes, 20 All-Conference players, two MSC Player of the Year selections and the Eagles' James Miller was the 2020-21 Ron Finley Appalachian Division Coach of the Year.

Additionally, the Eagles combined for 19 NAIA All-Americans, brought home two national championships and one NAIA Coach of the Year.

Men's lacrosse finished the season 17-0 for the first time in program history after dismantling No. 2 Indiana Tech in the 2021 NAIA Men's Lacrosse National Invitational Final, 17-8, on May 8, 2021 to claim its fourth-consecutive NAIA red banner and bring it back to Waleska, Ga.

Earlier in March, after securing a 15-4 major decision over Giovanni Bonilla of Grand View (Iowa) at 157 pounds, top-seeded Nolan Saxton wrote his name in the record books by becoming the first Eagle in wrestling history to earn an individual national championship.

"I am delighted but not surprised at Bill Popp's selection as the NAIA Athletics Director of the Year," AAC Commissioner John Sullivan said. "Bill continues to be a leader and pace-setter in the AAC and at the national level, but this past year has really tested his strength of character, leadership and frankly, endurance.

I told him several times over the year that I thought my term as Chair of the National Administrative Council (NAC) was a momentous one, but it pales in comparison to what the NAC and especially the NAC Executive Committee has done over this past year. Bill's leadership was instrumental in guiding the Council to wise and timely decisions that affected all of the members throughout the country and beyond."

Popp, the Vice President of the AAC, also serves on several boards within the NAIA. He is currently the Vice Chair of the NAC, the Chair of the National Drug Testing and Education Committee and is a member of the NAIA's Athletic Directors Association Board of Directors.

He also oversaw Reinhardt hosting three NAIA Opening Rounds on campus for football, women's volleyball and softball a season ago. The Eagles also hosted AAC Championship games for men's and women's soccer, as well as the semifinal and championship rounds of the AAC Men's Lacrosse Championship.

Perhaps most importantly, Reinhardt Athletics combined for a GPA of 3.23 in 2020-21, with 20 Eagle teams (every competing squad on campus after combining track and field) qualified for NAIA Scholar-Team honors (must have a minimum 3.0-grade point average).

Popp's guidance has been felt across the NAIA, the AAC and with each and every sports team at Reinhardt, but his biggest influence could be taking place in the hallways of the Brown Athletic Center on a daily basis.

"Congratulations to Coach Popp on being awarded the 2021 NAIA Athletic Director of the Year," Associate Athletic Director Jeffrey Pourchier said. "Reinhardt is extremely blessed to have Coach Popp as our leader. Coach has been a great mentor to me in my professional career and life, and I am beyond grateful to him for the opportunity to work by his side for the last six years.  

Thank you Coach for being very instrumental in my career. I appreciate your mentorship, guidance and friendship."

The awards luncheon and ceremony will be during the 2022 NAIA National Convention in Kansas City, Mo., which takes place April 8-12, 2022.   

To view the full list of 2021 honorees from the NAIA, please click here.

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